The foundation is preparing to celebrate the 200th anniversary in 2014 of the writing of the anthem. The lyrics were written by Francis Scott Key during the Battle of Baltimore in 1814, and Thursday will mark 80 years since Congress named "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem.

As the story goes, Key wrote the lyrics the night after an attack on Fort McHenry.

“(Key) wrote down some ideas and went back to a tavern that night, when he was released by the Irish, and he actually wrote this very document that we have here today,” said Burton Kummerow, president of the Maryland Historical Society.

The old center was built in 1964 and accommodated 250,000 visitors per year, but it was soon overwhelmed. The new $15 million, 17,000-square-foot facility that will formally open Thursday will welcome the more than 600,000 people who now visit annually.

Tours the new visitors center

A new exhibit area is more than three times larger the former space and includes three galleries where visitors can learn about the causes of the War of 1812 and the moment when Key was inspired to write the anthem.

“When people walk away from an event like this, we want them not only to ask themselves, 'What does the anthem mean to me,' but also, 'How we can further educate and appreciate the events that took place,'” said Dan Esmond, of the National Anthem Celebration Foundation.

“To see the original manuscript, to see what became our national anthem really gives you goosebumps,” said U.S. Rep. John Sarbanes, D-District 3.

A private viewing held at the Senate office building featured all four versions of "The Star-Spangled Banner," sang by the U.S. Naval Academy Glee Club.

“We have a tremendous history in Maryland. Very few stories tell the story of our diversity, of our strength and our resilience so profoundly as the defense of "The Star-Spangled Banner,” said Gov. Martin O'Malley.